Change volume settings in Windows Media Player

You have several options for controlling volume in Windows Media Player, including adjusting the volume level, muting, or reducing volume differences either within a song or between songs. Note that other software and hardware controls can affect the volume and audio effects settings in the Player.

If you encounter problems, try adjusting your Windows audio settings, the physical controls on your speakers, subwoofer (speaker for bass audio frequencies), or amplifier; or the settings in any other software used to configure the sound card in your computer. For information about how to adjust the speaker volume in Windows, see Adjust the sound level on your computer.

You can avoid sharp volume changes in a piece of music by using Quiet mode, which reduces the difference between the loudest and softest sounds. This feature is available only with files that were encoded using the Windows Media Audio 9 or Windows Media Audio 10 Lossless and Professional codecs.

In Now Playing mode, right-click an open space in the Player (such as to the left of the Stop button), point to Enhancements, and then click Quiet mode.

If you’re currently in the Player Library, click the Switch to Now Playing button in the lower-right corner of the Player.

Click the Turn on link, and then do one of the following:

For a smaller difference between loud and soft sounds, click Medium difference.

For the smallest difference between loud and soft sounds, click Little difference.

To hide the settings, click the Close button in the Quiet mode dialog box.

If your songs play at different volume levels, you can have the Player level out (also called normalize) the volume for you so that you don't have to manually adjust the volume when a new song starts. The Player does so by reading a volume-leveling value in the audio file, and then adjusting the volume accordingly during playback.

Volume leveling is available only with files that are in Windows Media Audio (WMA) or MP3 format and contain a volume-leveling value. This value is automatically added to the files that are created during the ripping process. In addition, you can add this value to files on your computer that you have added to your Player Library. Adding the value doesn't change either the quality of a file or how the file plays in other players or portable media devices. Here's how to turn on volume leveling:

In Now Playing mode, right-click an open space in the Player (such as to the left of the Stop button), point to Enhancements, and then click Crossfading and auto volume leveling.

If you’re currently in the Player Library, click the Switch to Now Playing button in the lower-right corner of the Player.

Click the Turn on Auto Volume Leveling link.

To add the volume-leveling value to a file, play the entire file with auto-leveling turned on. The Player will then level the volume for that file whenever you play it in the future.

To hide the settings, click the Close button in the Crossfading and auto volume leveling dialog box.

You have several options for controlling volume in Windows Media Player, including adjusting the volume level, muting, and reducing volume differences either within a song or between songs. Remember that other software and hardware controls can affect the volume and audio effects settings in the Player. If you encounter problems, try adjusting your Windows audio settings, the physical controls on your speakers, subwoofer, or amplifier, or the settings in any other software used to configure the sound card in your computer.
For information about how to adjust the speaker volume in Windows, see Windows Help and Support.

You can avoid wide swings in volume in a piece of music by reducing the difference between the loudest and softest sounds. This feature is available only with files that were encoded by using the Windows Media Audio 9 Lossless codec or Windows Media Audio 9 Professional codec.

Click the arrow below the Now Playing tab, point to Enhancements, and then click Quiet Mode.

Click the Turn on link, and then do one of the following:

For a smaller difference between loud and soft sounds, click Medium difference.

For the smallest difference between loud and soft sounds, click Little difference.

To hide the settings, click the Close button in the Enhancements pane.

If your songs play at different volume levels, you can have the Player level (also called normalize) the volume for you so that you don't have to manually adjust the volume when a new song starts. The Player does so by reading a volume-leveling value in a file, and then adjusting the volume accordingly during playback. Volume leveling is only available with files that are in Windows Media or MP3 format and contain a volume-leveling value. This value is automatically added to the files that are created during ripping. In addition, you can add this value to files on your computer that you have added to your Player library. Adding the value does not change either the quality of a file or how the file plays in other players or portable media devices. To turn on volume-leveling, do the following:

Click the arrow below the Now Playing tab, point to Enhancements, and then click Crossfading and Auto Volume Leveling.

Click the Turn on Auto Volume Leveling link.

To add the volume-leveling value to a file, play the entire file. The Player will then level the volume for that file whenever you play it in the future.

To hide the settings, click the Close button in the Enhancements pane.

(Optional) To add a volume-leveling value to files, do the following:

Click the arrow below the Library tab, and then click Add to Library.

Click Advanced Options, and then select the Add volume-leveling values for all files (slow) check box.